


i am the enemy most days

by Chet_Un_Gwan



Series: Whumptober 2020 [2]
Category: Friends at the Table (Podcast)
Genre: Collars, M/M, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Whumptober 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:42:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26823847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chet_Un_Gwan/pseuds/Chet_Un_Gwan
Summary: Day two: In the hands of the enemy. “Pick who dies”/Collars/Kidnapped
Relationships: Cassander Timaeus Berenice/Ibex
Series: Whumptober 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1956517
Kudos: 1





	i am the enemy most days

Cass could barely keep their eyes open. Whatever they had been given was powerful, and while they had been able to resist the effects for a few minutes, it had fully taken hold now. They felt like they were floating slightly, and disconnected from their body. 

Someone put a hand on their neck, tilting them. Cass vaguely felt something pushed under their neck, and then back around, until it was fastened at the front. It was hard to figure out what it was. It was hard to think at all. Somewhere, laughter was echoing down at them, but that was also hard to focus on. Their limbs felt like water when they tried to move, and that was so strange that for a while they just twitched their arm back and forth.

There was something they were supposed to be doing. Somewhere they were supposed to be. They frowned, distracted from their arm. There had been someone else there, hadn’t there? Until there wasn’t, until something had happened. Had that someone been an enemy? An ally? They couldn’t remember, couldn’t picture the person’s face.

Suddenly, they were jerked backwards, their gasp cut off by the sudden pressure around their throat. A collar, that’s what it was, they had been collared. The sudden pain gave Cass the momentary clarity needed to find the word. They were dragged back, until their back hit a solid wall. There were hands over them, at their throat and face, and for a moment Cass felt raw panic surging up. They couldn’t contain it as they were, and the terror was overwhelming. Then it faded away, unnaturally fast. They felt exhausted.

There was a click by their ear, and the hands withdrew. When they rolled their head over to look, they saw a chain leading from their neck to a loop set into the wall. It was short. If their head fell forwards, it would catch them and hold them upright, drawing tight around their neck. The thought made Cass shiver as they realized that that was a real possibility with how out of it they were.

Footsteps receded, and a door was shut, plunging the room into darkness. Cass found that they could open their eyes fully now that there wasn’t light assailing them. They didn’t know how long they sat there, trying to stay awake enough to not fall forward and choke on the collar. They were feeling somewhat more awake when they heard the sounds.

From somewhere far off, there was the sound of gunfire, and shouts. It seemed to be getting closer, but they couldn’t track it well enough to be sure. At one point, they drifted off entirely, until their head fell forward and they had to wake up or else choke. They realized then that the sound was much closer. There was a banging outside the door.

When it flew open, Cass had to shut their eyes against the light, turning their head to help block it out. There were slow footsteps towards them, and Cass flinched back.

The footsteps paused, and then continued, slower this time. Whoever it was reached where they sat, close enough now to partially block out the light. Cass opened their eyes a crack, but couldn’t make out any details. Then the person crouched down. Cass could suddenly see their face, and they felt a rush of tangled emotions that they couldn’t even begin to sort out in their current state.

It was Ibex. They had been with Ibex, they had both been captured and held together, until their captors had dragged Cass away to drug them. Ibex had broken out. Ibex was here to rescue them.

When Ibex reached forwards slowly, they didn’t feel the panic from before. Instead, they leaned in, resting their head on his palm. Ibex made a faint noise, but they couldn’t really decipher it, and weren’t really inclined to try. Ibex’s hand was on their temple, and it was so comforting to know that they were being touched by someone who wasn’t going to hurt them. They slowly rubbed their head against his hand, feeling the collar catch with every movement. Even it was less frightening now.

They slowly realized that Ibex was saying something, and they tried to focus enough to understand it. “-realize that you are not in full control of yourself, but I need to undo that chain. We need to get out of here. Do you understand me?”

Cass hummed in affirmative, still leaning against Ibex’s palm. When they looked up, the look on his face was completely different from anything they had ever seen. They had no idea what it meant, but at least part of it looked… afraid. They hummed again, and pressed their cheek into his hand.

Ibex visibly took a deep breath, and then reach with his other hand for the collar’s clasp. He fiddled with it, frowning, and when he tugged slightly trying to get a better look at the mechanism, Cass felt a gasp catch in their throat. It felt completely different than when they were dragged by it, or when they felt asleep and nearly choked. The light tug felt secure, comforting on some level.

Cass was vaguely aware that those weren’t thoughts they would ever entertain under normal circumstances, but it was too much effort to care about that. Their limbs still felt oddly disconnected, and their head felt floaty. Ibex slipped a finger under the collar to get at the latch, and Cass felt their eyes slide shut. They sighed. Ibex’s fingers twitched.

“Are you… are you aware, right now?” Ibex said softly. “Do you know what you’re doing? Are you going to remember this?” He turned the collar slightly, and moved his hand away from Cass’s face to pull out a lockpick. “I don’t think you’d want to. I don’t think you’d want to remember being so vulnerable in front of me. I am, after all, the enemy. Most days.”

The clasp clicked, and the collar fell away. “Let’s get out of here.” Ibex said.


End file.
